Why Aren’t People Ordering Our New Menu Items?

You spent weeks creating the perfect new dishes. You trained the staff, printed new menus and maybe even posted about it once or twice. But days go by, and barely anyone’s ordering them. Sound familiar?

You’re not alone. Many restaurant and cafe owners introduce exciting new items only to watch them flop. Not because they’re bad but because no one knows, no one cares or they’re just not sold right.

Here’s what might be going wrong and what to do about it.

1) You soft-launched it to nothing.

Dropping a dish quietly and hoping people “notice it” is a guaranteed way to get ignored. People need to be told - clearly and repeatedly on what’s new and why it matters.

Instead, run a mini campaign just like you would a major launch - tease it before the launch, drop it with a bang and reinforce with urgency.

2) Your staff don't push it.

If your team isn’t excited or trained to upsell the new item, most customers won’t even hear about it. Remember, people often default to what they already know.

Make sure staff are briefed, taste the new item and know how to describe it in one punchy line. Offer a small incentive for whoever sells the most each day/week.

3) Your content doesn't sell it.

You posted one photo on launch day and thought that was enough. It’s not. Great content is repetition + craving. And if it doesn’t visually trigger hunger, it’s a scroll-past.

Capture the dish in motion - sauce pours, sizzling, first bite. Do a short-form video with staff recommending it or diners trying it for the first time. Show how it fits the vibe (e.g. date night, hangover brunch, etc.)

4) You have too many menu items.

If the new mains are is hidden between 17 other options, it won’t stand out even if it’s your best work.

Either optimise your menu and take off the ones that don't sell, and/or highlight it in a box or with a "new" badge.

5) You are selling what you like, not what people want.

The dish might be your (or the chef's) personal favourite, but that doesn’t mean it fits what your audience craves. Sometimes the market doesn’t care about what’s seasonal or concept-driven - they want something comforting, shareable or photo-worthy.

Look at your past top sellers. What’s the common thread? Ask your front-of-house team what people ask for. Don’t guess - gather data, then test. If you are new to this business, research your competitors.

6) There is no urgency.

People respond to scarcity, limited-time offers, and seasonal drops. Without any of that, they’ll think “I’ll try it next time” and they never do.

Try turning it into a time-limited run - e.g. only for July, with 30 dishes available per day.

A new menu item is a product launch so treat it like one. Success is in how you position and push it, not just in how well you cook it. What sells isn’t always what you love but it’s what your audience craves and connects with.

Want help planning your next menu launch properly?

We’ve done everything from market research, new hero dishes planning, ingredient and price planning. Get in touch and we’ll show you how to turn new items into crowd favourites instead of forgotten experiments.